Resources for Voters

EAC maintains the National Mail Voter Registration Form, which voters can use to register to vote and update their registration information. The form is available in seven languages.

EAC also provides voter guides in 11 languages and a variety of links to helpful resources for voters relating to registration, military and overseas voting, accessibility, and volunteering as a poll worker.

Voting System Testing and Certification

HAVA mandates that EAC accredit voting system test laboratories and certify voting equipment, marking the first time the federal government has offered these services to the states.

EAC is committed to running the program in a transparent manner, releasing voting system test plans and reports for the public to review and posting detailed information about the voluntary voting system guidelines, program policies, and related correspondence.

Election Management Resources

One of EAC's top priorities is providing assistance to election officials. We do this by issuing guidance, advisories and best practices to help officials comply with the Help America Vote Act and make other election administration improvements and enhancements.

Payments and Grants

EAC administers federal funding to improve the administration of U.S. elections as authorized by the Help America Vote Act. The commission also manages discretionary, competitive grant programs authorized by HAVA, including the HAVA College Program to recruit college students to serve as poll workers and the HAVA Mock Election Program, which supports activities to educate secondary students in the electoral process.

Research

EAC is responsible under the Help America Vote Act for collecting information about election administration issues and sharing that information with Congress, election officials and the public.

This section contains completed research and reports commissioned by EAC, information about EAC research in progress, and additional elections research issued by other organizations. Datasets are also available to download.

National Voter Registration Act

Voters can use the National Mail Voter Registration Form to register to vote, update registration information due to a change of name, make a change of address, or register with a political party.

The National Form also contains voter registration rules and regulations for each state and territory. For more information about registering to vote, contact your state election office. Read our Frequently Asked Questions for more information about the national form.

Presidential Elections and the Electoral College

from: Jessica Myers on
Apr 19, 2012

Presidential Elections and the Electoral CollegeLast week we talked about how Election Day results are tabulated in the United States. Tabulation at local election offices and certification of those results by the state are but two steps in the process of electing a President.

Electoral CollegeThe Electoral College is a result of a compromise reached during the Constitutional Convention of 1787. The Electoral College as it is today is very similar to the one used to elect our nation’s first President. The process was modified by amendment in 1804 and changed minimally by Federal and State statutes in the intervening years. The entire process is outlines in Title 3, Chapter 1 of the U.S. Code, but we attempt to provide a summary here.

How will it work in 2012?Each State’s number of electors is equal to the number of Representatives and Senators it has in Congress. Prior to the Presidential Election, each political party submits a roster of electors to each state individually. After Election Day, the roster of electors for the winning party makes up the Electoral College for each State. After the results from the November 6 election are tabulated and certified, the State transmits the certified results and names of the electors to the Archivist of the U.S.

Electors from one state will not meet electors from any other state during this process. Electors in the Electoral College from each state meet only once, on December 17, 2012, at a location determined by each state.

Once convened, the electors in each state cast one vote for President and one vote for Vice President. From these votes a certificate is created with two lists of the results for President and Vice President. Four copies identical copies of this list are created and a copy is mailed to the President of the Senate (Vice President of the U.S.), Secretary of State of their state, the Archivist of the U.S. and the District Judge of the location where the Electoral College met.

Then, on January 6, 2013, the Vice President of the U.S. presides over a joint session of Congress where the certificates from each Electoral College are opened and read aloud. After the votes are counted, the Vice President announces the results and calls for any objections. If there are no objections and each candidate receives at least 270 of the 538 Electoral College votes, the election results are official.

For more information, please see the EAC’s whitepaper on The Electoral College. If you have additional questions, please contact Jessica Myers at jmyers@eac.gov or via Twitter @EACgov.

The purpose of this blog is to share useful, innovative and practical information about voting and elections with interested parties. EAC also intends to provide this forum to host conversations with the public. EAC encourages the submission of comments from the public and hopes that interested individuals will provide submissions on a regular basis. EAC also recognizes the value of providing this forum to facilitate discussions concerning best practices, solutions, and innovative ideas in election administration.

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